


When Equal Powers Clash

by WitchWayWizardry



Category: DCU (Comics), Devi (Comics), Marvel (Comics), Spawn (Comics), Virgin (Comics), Witchblade (Comics), Wonder Woman (Comics), Wonder Woman - All Media Types
Genre: Angels, Demons, F/F, Goddesses, Gods, Monsters, Mortals, Multiverse, New Infinite Crisis, New War of the Gods, Omniverse, When Equal Powers Clash, When Limitless Powers Clash
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-28
Updated: 2020-03-03
Packaged: 2020-09-28 11:48:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20425475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WitchWayWizardry/pseuds/WitchWayWizardry
Summary: Princess Diana of Themyscira, Daughter of Queen Hippolyta and Lord Zeus of Olympus. The Goddess of Truth.Supreme Devi, Celestial Warrior and Champion of Peace. The Goddess of War.Apart, the two goddesses are without equal.  Apart, the two forces ensure justice and stability to their universes.  Apart, the two women inspire, serve, and protect all who need them.  Apart, the two are both “she whom evil fears.”But together…?These two together is another story entirely untold before…





	1. Goddesses Apart

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read the "Devi" comics, created by Shekhar Kapur and published by Virgin Comics, I highly recommend that everyone do so. They combine gorgeous art, believable characters, rich cultural tradition, and timeless themes to creatively re-imagine the Durga mythos from Hindu/Shakta faiths.

“Long, long ago,”

“In the First Century of Man,”

The champion of the gods, the goddess of peace, Supreme Devi, succeeded in vanquishing the wicked god Bala. With the fallen god defeated and sealed away, the shining fathers and pantheon-shapers of Devi felt safe to descend to Earth. Offering mantras and spells to ease the minds and spirits of the newly freed mortals from the corrupting enslavement of Bala, the gods shared their relief with mankind. The Universe was saved.

Devi offered of herself the power to restore the gods’ own. To collect the willing and freely given worship of mankind, and keep that limitless power safe. In this Source contained divinity to create, destroy, and transcend universes. It is of the goddess; it is of mankind. It is coveted by many.

And so, Devi left her mortal vessel, transcending beyond the universe, awaiting the time when she would next be needed. Whenever balance tipped too far beyond equilibrium, she would be there to right the scales. Whenever Life, in Its infinite glory, lost sight of Itself in the waves of Chaos, she would return to those who were awash. Whenever evil would threaten, enslave, or taint hope with fear, the gods and humanity would pray to Devi to save them, and save them she would. Time and Time and Time again.

\---------------------

“Long ago,”

“In the third millennia of Man,”

Two children were born in Paradise. The only children born in Paradise, born to the Queen of the Amazons. The eldest of the twins was called Diana, and she was god-gifted; she was goddess.

She grew to be hero, savior, and champion. Limitless strength and endless love; impossible speed and radiant beauty. Diana defeated wicked gods, and destroyed rampaging monsters of myth; she banished demons of the Pit, and bested angels of the Heavens. She earned the favor of the Most High, and solidified herself not only as the goddess of Truth, but as Truth itself made flesh. She, a fundamental aspect of existence. 

She devotes her eternal life to service, to give her immortal life among mortals meaning. She stays, she serves, she fights and she gives. For the world she knows can be. This is her mission, now and forever.

Apart, the two goddesses are without equal. Apart, the two forces ensure justice and stability to their universes. Apart, the two women inspire, serve, and protect all who need them. Apart, the two are both “she whom evil fears.”

But together…?

These two together is another story entirely untold before…

\---------------------

“Today,”

“Sitapur, India. Another Earth.”

Tara Metha sits at her desk, covered in a thick layer of papers, binders, folders, and writing implements. She rifles through them, muttering to herself, and keeping an eye on the clock on the opposite wall.

“Where is it? Where is it, where is it, where is it?”

“Umm… Tara?”

“Yes, Kunj?” Tara asked, not looking up, a hint of desperation in her voice.

“Are you looking for this?”

Tara looked up to see Kunj holding a manila folder in his hands. He brought it into her office before she even answered, but his kind smile brightened as Tara gasped in shocked relief.

“Where did you find it?!” She asked, taking the applications from him.

“Next to the fax machine, along with these copies,” He held those papers out as well, “Figured it was just you trying to do too much all at once again.”

“Oh, thank God!” Tara sighed, “I’ll never try to multitask again.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Kunj laughed.

“No, but really Kunj, thank you. I’ve been trying to finalize the terms of these adoptions for weeks now, and with these papers, all we need are the final signatures!”

“I always did enjoy saving the day,” Kunj pattered his ample belly in satisfaction.

“You really, really did, Kunj.”

“Well then, best get back to my own responsibilities then.”

The waved farewell to each other as Kunj left Tara’s office. Tara took a deep breath to calm her nerves, looking at the clock again, and checked the forms in the folder for completeness. Satisfied, Tara grabbed her purse, fished out her compact, and checked her reflected appearance. Her luminous brown skin matched the deep, friendly color of her eyes.

“Let’s get these kids in with good families, Tara.”

Tara tucked the paperwork under her arm, smoothed down her dress with her free hand, tussled her thick black hair, and walked confidently to get to work.

\---------------------

“U.N. Headquarters, New York City. Prime Earth.”

Diana of Themyscira, Princess of the Amazons, Ambassador to Man’s World, Daughter of Queen Hippolyta and Lord Zeus, Champion of Life, Goddess of Truth, and the Wonder Woman, felt like she was at her wit’s end.

But she’d often felt as such these past few months. Criminal and supernatural activity seemed to be at an all-time low. Or at least low enough not to warrant her direct involvement. Normally, for most heroes, this would be a good thing. And it was good, to be sure. But Diana wasn’t like most heroes. And even if crime is low, that didn’t mean that the wars had stopped.

Maybe that was why she felt so frustrated. It used to be so simple: an atrocity would be committed, and Diana would come to stop the fighting. Simple. Yes, she had diplomatic immunity, along with other privileges and advantages. And yes, the people were always grateful for her help in stopping the violence. Always happy to see her. But the leaders were not.

The governed were grateful for her. The people were pleased to learn from her. The governors were not. They felt she interfered in things she should not. And the politicians had complained to the United Nations. Now, Diana was forbidden from interfering with nations embroiled in war for strife – if they were affiliated with the UN in any capacity – unless they specifically asked for her help.

_“The fact is, your highness, you’re essentially a one woman no-fly zone,”_ One man had said, _“When you come into a country, the whole of production and trade just stops.”_

_“War production and trade stops, ambassador,”_ A woman had countered in Diana’s defense, _“But healing, rebuilding, creativity… Peace? These things start again when Wonder Woman comes to end the fighting. As she did in my country.”_

_“You are oversimplifying this, madam.”_

_“And you aren’t?”_

It felt righteous to have friends who would defend her after she defended them, but Diana was still barred. Barred from her mission. And the Justice League was not her mission, despite being her family and all the good they do together.

Diana entered the ladies’ room, gripping the marble counter as the faucet ran, but not too tightly. She didn’t want to bring the building down, even if she felt she needed to vent some frustration. Taking a few deep breaths and rinsing her face did her composure some good, and just in time for her to receive a communication.

“Wondy?” Barry Allen’s concern was evident, and he wasn’t the only person on the line.

“Yes, Flash?” Diana was never good at masking her emotions.

“You okay?” Barry asked.

“No, I’m not,” Diana said, “But I will be. How have you heard so quickly?”

“Bloggers and Twitter news is already posted,” Barry sounded apologetic, “And you’re trending.”

“Oh, good…” Diana sighed, sarcastically.

“It’s just ridiculous!” Victor Stone said, emphatically, “That dictator doesn’t like that you’ve ended a threat that he couldn’t, so he ran complaining to the UN?”

“In his defense, I did end up breaking a lot of his nation’s things.”

“Oh, come one. And how much stuff did those terrorists end up breaking before AND after you got there? Don’t make excuses when you don’t have to Diana. You taught me that.”

“Thank you, Cyborg.” And she meant it.

“I’m surprised you’ll be following their edict at all,” Bruce Wayne mused.

“Of course, I will,” Diana was surprised that Batman would say something like that.

“To the letter?” Kendra Sanders interjected.

“Yes, Hawkwoman, to the letter,” Diana stressed.

“They keep the goddess contained and restrained,” Bruce waxed poetic, “Despite the good that she can do.”

“Interesting tangent, coming from you Batman,” Clark Kent pointed out.

“Is it though? Diana didn’t kill anyone in that insurrectionist group she subdued. They’ll be put on trial. That’s something the government wouldn’t be able to accomplish.”

“And if Clark did what you’re suggesting Diana should do?” Dinah Queen, the Black Canary, asked.

“Clark doesn’t have diplomatic immunity,” Bruce said, “But he could. Really, no one in the world could stop either of them. And they’d be able to make real change.”

“Everyone, please,” Diana’s tired voice interrupted their debates, “Real, sustainable peace is never made by force. It requires compromise. And that is what I will do today. Now, I’d really rather not - .”

But Diana was silenced by a slithering, crackling sound from behind her. Reality split at the seams, tearing an opalescent hole in the fabric between molecules. A door was open to her; she was grateful she came to the UN wearing her divine armor and Lasso.

“Diana?” Of course, Superman had heard it too.

“Looks like I’ll have to step away for a while,” She answered, “Flash, could you please try to track where I’ll be going?”

“We talking other Earths here?”

“Feels that way; talk with you all soon.”

“Be safe, Diana,” Clark said, “Let us know if you need us.”

“I will.”

And Wonder Woman stepped forward, walking into the unknown.


	2. Goddesses Together

Her breathing was becoming more and more harsh, her brow furrowed in desperate concentration, and her skin beaded with sweat. Inside her office, Tara moved quickly to shut and lock the door. She hoped her excuse to close their meeting early hadn’t offended the last of the new parents. She saw the look on their faces: such wondrous happiness and excitement; it was obvious they hardly noticed her leave. They were parents now, and Tara had done her job. But, of course, there was more work to do.

In the glass reflection of a wall-mounted painting, one that was generic and mass produced, Tara saw not herself, but the Goddess within.

“They call to us,” Devi said, calmly, “They pray to us.”

Tara absently wiped the moisture from her face with a neckerchief hidden in the secret pockets of her skirt. If only it was her will to remain herself that could prevent the transformation, but it wasn’t so simple. And Devi was right: she could feel the terror and alarm of the supplicants who begged for salvation. Even if they knew not that they were heard, and by the living radiant Goddess, no less. Tara knew she had to give in, but there was always that fear. The nagging, persistent, recurring fear that was solely her own.

“We are one, Tara,” Devi reassured her for the hundredth upon hundredth time, “Your soul is your own, and I will not take this vessel for myself. You have my word.”

“Don’t you ever get tired of promising me that? Over and over?” Tara hoarsely confronted the divinity who watched her struggle.

“Yes, I do,” Devi replied, “But I will continue to promise it all the same, until you trust in me. As I want to trust in you.”

Devi, of course, had no reason to lie. Tara, naturally, was being stubborn. But the Goddess was right: they call to her.

“Time grows short, Tara.”

“Yes,” Tara closed her eyes, and took a deep breath, “I know.”

Upon her surrender, Tara felt herself melt into the infinite of the Goddess within. Through their eyes, she could see; in their mind, Tara would be free to offer counsel. However, until the threat was ended, here in the endless void she would remain.

Devi underwent her transformation with a surge of power unrivaled throughout the cosmos. The mortality and the vestments worn fell away to show the solid black silken armor, headdress, and gloves of one born for battle. Along her left arm sparked and glowed the emblems of the Goddess; limitless chakrams of pure energy, and a symbol of the gifts bestowed on her by the shining fathers. And on her forehead blazed the sigil of power that was hers and hers alone. Again, Devi heard the joyful noise of the world at her arrival. It was a song no mortal could hear, but it was an ecstasy felt when she was beheld to them.

Instantly, Devi let the prayers carry her to where she was needed. She flexed her fingers and tensed her whole being, opening her mind to observe, analyze, and confront what evils threaten the innocent and the good.

\---------------------------

Wonder Woman stepped out in the milling of a crowded street; made all the more active with the fall of evening, and the end of the workday. The air was rich and full of smells – human, perfumes, spices, and pollution. The roads were congested, with plenty of daring motorcyclists weaving between the much larger, but stationary, cars, vans, and trucks. Music from radios and televisions, shouting from countless voices, and horns honking from all sides threatened to overwhelm her enhanced senses.

The people were all of Indian ancestry, perhaps from the whole of the sub-continent, as far as Diana’s eyes could discern. Her knowledge of all languages confirmed a dialect of southern India, and reading the signs showed mention of the city of Sitapur.

“India it is, then,” Diana muttered to herself.

The people who passed by her, as she collected her bearings, all stared in awe of her. She towered over most of them, with her tanned skin – fairer than most – and her stunning beauty made plenty of them whisper to each other. The women commented on her revealing armor, while a good number of men simply stared with mouths open slightly. They all watched her, but there was no recollection in their eyes, no sense of knowing who she was – despite being known throughout the universe.

_They don’t know who I am. So, this is a universe where I don’t exist, or one where I have never left Themyscira,_ Diana reasoned to herself, _Makes this a little bit more difficult._

Resolving to find a way to blend in better, Diana found her plans cut short with the wailing call of many sirens. Ignoring the shocked shouts as she took to the sky, Diana floated over the rooftops and scanned the city and the slums for the procession of emergency vehicles she’d heard.

“There!”

Wonder Woman used her gifted speed and power of flight to follow the police cars and ambulances making haste to the site of a terrorist attack.

\---------------------------

The frightened people were huddled together on the floor of the temple. Many had escaped when the first burst of gunfire had sent them all scrambling for the exits. But more than three dozen remained as hostages. Several devotees prayed, with their eyes on the effigies and statues, while others watched over the elderly and the children, trying to instill calm and trust. One young woman wasn’t afraid to look into the faces of the men who stormed this holy place, but fear and confusion came quickly as she saw what crawled beneath the skin and muscle. Inhuman eyes, sharp teeth under their lips, and blackened nails itching to squeeze the triggers of their machine guns.

“You’re sure she’ll come?” One of them asked the largest among them.

“She’ll come,” His unnaturally deep voice seemed to shake the earth itself, “She hears their prayers; she’ll come.”

None of them noticed the materializing Goddess, forming from within the statue of wise Saraswati and exiting it to be herself once more. She had already taken stock of the demon-possessed men and their poorly disguised leader: Vetala. One of the captains of the defeated god Bala, Devi’s first enemy. These remains of his army – the faithful – were always trying to get revenge on her for their fallen lord. They were never all that clever, but they were ruthless and sadistic and dangerous all the same. Vetala was one of the worst of them; his human suit barely hid the terrible demon underneath, and the odor of his wickedness was already pulling the humans they’d captured nearer to despair.

“You’re right, Vetala,” Devi called out, “For once.”

The demon and his enthralled minions turned almost as one, each pointing a surprised weapon at her.

“Kill her!” Vetala shouted.

Bullets exploded from the barrels of a dozen guns, but Devi didn’t move. Rather, tendrils of her divinity shot forth like lightning, dancing and flickering and knocking each of the offending projectiles to the floor, harmless. But the cadre of evil-doers was better organized than Devi gave them credit. They didn’t exhaust their bullets all together; some reloaded while others fired on. Devi noticed this tactic, but refused to let them use it a second time. With the wave of her hand, her power found their targets, slicing through the guns being reloaded. They dropped from the hands of the men, in pieces and smoldering on the ground.

With a terrible roar, and his true form beginning to split and tears its way out of the human masquerade, Vetala charged Devi with his two wicked looking blades. She summoned a long polearm of radiant energy, and blocked his attack.

“We will see you ended, Devi!” Vetala snarled, “Lord Bala will be avenged!”

“Same old song for you, isn’t it, Vetala?” Devi teased him as they clashed, “Release the men you’ve sent your snakes inside, before I force them… and you.”

“Only when you’re returned to nothingness!”

Devi could feel that Vetala was just a distraction; in her peripheral vision, she noticed his minions dashing behind pillars and statues. What were they planning? Normally, Devi would assume Vetala to be of little threat. But he’d evidently enhanced his powers with vile spells and enchantments. And Devi couldn’t risk using too much of her power, or she might hurt the innocent mortals, shying away from their battle.

It would seem though, for Vetala, their battle was over. His grotesque smile leered at Devi, before he shouted loud and clear.

“Now!”

The chanting was loud; the spell was complex. Each of the possessed men was responsible for a different cadence, and they recited the words in record time, before even Devi could process their intention and react. The floor became alight with a magical design, blazing with hellish power. Devi could read the words in the symbols of a language long dead. The lines and images on the floor spread disastrously fast. And Devi let her mind race, pointlessly trying to find a way to stop this, to save everyone. Vetala intended to destroy the entire temple in a terrible explosion. Devi would survive, she was sure. Vetala as well, perhaps. But all the innocents inside, those possessed and those who were not, would die. It wouldn’t be a defeat, but it would be a terrible blow to Devi and her mission.

And there was nothing she could do.

Panic gripped her heart and impending sorrow weighed heavy on her soul, but in the moments before the spell’s completion, a crashing figure burst through the windows of the temple’s sky-light ceiling. Devi, Vetala, and a few others quick enough to look up at the new arrival saw an armor-clad woman, muscular and impossibly beautiful, flying to the ground. With an outstretched fist, the woman’s fingers, wrist, and right forearm were wrapped in a glowing golden cord of some kind. She let out a triumphant shout as her fist connected with the spell cast on the tiled floor. Golden light exploded out in all directions, the force of the woman’s power knocking all save Devi and Vetala down. The floor cracked and splintered from her punch, but the magic of that glowing rope had stopped the spell. The lines and symbols quickly faded from view.

The woman stood with grace and confidence; she took careful and measured stock of the whole situation. When she met the eyes of Devi, the connection forged was undeniably intense. Without words, the two knew instantly that they were comrades, trusted and true.

Vetala let loose a terrible, unearthly cry at his plan crumbling away from the unforeseen interference. Moving without command, his possessed men intended death and pain to all the innocent humans gathered. But Devi knew they would be safe. She just knew. And as both she and Vetala stopped their duel to witness the stranger’s speed and strength, Devi was – for lack of a better phrase – blown away.

The mystery woman moved so impossibly fast. She blocked every shot from the offending weapons with her magnificent silver bracelets, before grabbing each rifle and crushing them in her hands. She dashed and zipped around the room, and none of the innocents were harmed. Not a single one. She was so fast, that Devi wondered if this stranger might even be faster than herself.

Vetala was distracted; his face aghast as everything he’d planned and worked for was coming to an end. One solid punch sent him flying and sprawling away. His human façade cracked, flaked, and fell away, partially exposing the monster underneath. The warrior woman had ensnared one of the men in the magical golden rope, and Devi saw her winding up for a devastating punch.

“Don’t kill them!” Devi called, “They’re possessed!”

For a moment, the woman looked offended at the very idea that she might deal a fatal blow to anyone, but she took Devi’s words to heart, holding the possessed man close in her snare.

“Who are you?” The woman commanded, in flawless Hindi.

The beast in her grip seemed to be resisting, but with the consequence of indescribable pain. And it seemed to get worse with each second he refused to answer her.

“The Lasso of Truth compels you answer!” She commanded again, this time in ancient Sanskrit, “Tell me who you are!”

“My name is Rajan Dandekar!” The human within cried out.

And with his proclamation of the truth, the demon riding his body screeched in unholy misery as it was forced to vacate Rajan Dandekar’s body, dissipating into nothingness. The man sagged weak and grateful into the stranger’s arms. She lay him down, before snapping the so-called Lasso of Truth out to capture another of the demons’ victims. Devi assisted with the exorcisms. Taking hold of the men, holding her thumb to their foreheads and her fist over their hearts. She burned the demons away with her might, but did no harm to the men they once controlled. 

The warrior woman and Devi turned as Vetala once more collected his bearings. He shouted his rage and indignation, unzipping the jacket he wore. He showed all in attendance the mass of explosives and wires that was strapped to his chest, his horrid reptilian face showing through the cracks of his disguise.

“You think you’ve won?!” Vetala screamed, as his thumb moved to press the detonator.

Together, Devi and the woman dashed forward and seized Vetala, rocketing up through the hole in the ceiling. Vetala screamed against the crushing force of their ascent, but he still managed to creep his finger closer to the button in his fist. Devi could see the woman ask her for trust and permission without words. Devi released her grip on Vetala, and the woman threw Vetala higher into the sky. He screamed his last as he finally managed to press the button. And as the explosion resounded through the air, Devi watched the woman slam her silver bracelets together. A magical shield spread as far as Devi could see; it prevented the fall of shrapnel and debris, and remained conjured until the woman uncrossed her arms.

The two continued only to look upon each other in silence and awe as they drifted back down to earth. With the violence ended, the police raided the temple, hurrying to bring all the hostages and subdued – unpossessed – men into protective custody. The two women helped with the relief effort, despite their distractions. It was like they couldn’t be too far from each other; like they couldn’t take their eyes off each other.

“Devi!” A powerful baritone voice called out.

A noticeably handsome man, roughish and rough around the edges, approached them. He wore the attire and badge of a detective, and like most everyone else, stopped in his tracks at the sight of the strange, gorgeous warrior. He cleared his throat, gathering his bearings.

“Mind introducing me, Devi?” The detective asked, cheeks flushed and eyes downcast.

“Later, Rahul,” Devi responded, “Mind coming with me?”

“Of course,” The woman nodded.

As the two took once more into the sky, Detective Rahul Singh exhaled the breath he’d been holding, and muttered to himself about needing a drink.

\---------------------------

“So, it’s finally begun.”

“And all the pieces are coming together.”

“We’ve brought together both ‘she whom evil fears’…”

“And the barriers between universes will begin to wither and die.”

“Infinite power is within our grasp.”

“And we all have our assignments. So, let’s get to work.”


End file.
